Nancy Lopez on Using a Chipper (Video)

No, I'm not crazy. While most of you may never use a chipper, there's still some useful info in this video. Take a quick watch -- it's short.



Take note of the description of Nancy's chipper. Basically it's a putter with 7-iron loft. This is useful info because this is a club specifically designed for players who struggle with chipping. That means that, if you struggle with chipping, your 7-iron is a good choice for general chipping from just off the green.

Let's start with that and see what we can come up with.

First of all, you can use your putting grip, normal ball position and normal putting motion with your 7-iron. Personally I find that this works better with a slightly open stance than when I putt normally because, when I use my putting grip with an iron, I naturally take the club back a bit more to the inside. The open stance makes it easier to swing my iron down my intended line. You may find that a square or even a closed stance works best for you. Experiment a little to find out.

Next, I mentioned using your normal ball position for putting. That works best if the ball is sitting on top of the grass. If it's sitting down slightly, move the ball back in your stance just a little. You don't want to hit the ground first.

Finally, you have two options for how you actually contact the ball. You can set up with the sole of the club flat on the ground -- you'll need to move the ball a bit farther away from you than when you putt normally -- or you can set the club slightly up on the toe, which will allow you to place the ball at its normal distance from you when putting. Again, experiment with this a little. I find that the "toed" position works better with my putting grip and the soled position works better with my normal chipping grip.

There is no reason to keep struggling with your chipping this year. You have lots of options because you can use any club that feels good to you, all the way up to your hybrids and driver. The key is to take a technique you feel comfortable with -- putting fills the bill for most people -- and adapt it to another club in your bag. Just follow the steps in this post as a guide for experimenting, and I'm sure you'll find something tailor-made for you.